DC's State Rail Plan and bicycling

On Monday night, DDOT hosted an open house to start the development of a District of Columbia State Rail Plan (SRP). While, as the name states, primarily a rail plan, there is some overlap with cycling in some of the likely projects.

One issue is how a passenger rail transportation system ties into the bicycle network. Something noted in the presentation material under "Plan Elements."

Union Station is pretty well connected, with the Metropolitan Branch Trail ended at the Bike Station there. And it will get better if it is built as rendered in the Union Station Master Plan.

The L'Enfant Plaza VRE station isn't quite as connected. I've always thought it would be cool to use the ROW from the west end of that platform west to 14th (under the Maryland Avenue Circle through the unused portion of tunnel for a bike trail. That's pretty unlikely to happen and it looks like CSX has been doing work on that part of the ROW and so it may not be unused for much longer. [As long as we're dreaming though, it could end with a ramp that uses this old abutment to allow you to jump the sidewalk Evil Knievel style.] But the Rail Plan presentation mentions that VRE will start a study of L'Enfant Station Improvements soon.

In addition to station access, there is also complimentary facilities work like the Virginia Avenue Streetscape project and its possible extension. The nascent New York Avenue rail trail would use an old rail tunnel and then run parallel to the Northeast Corridor/Camden line. A new Long Bridge will likely include a bike/ped path as well. And creating a principle that all future rail projects - like replacing the two bridges across the Anacostia - should include a bike element when possible could help to expand the bike network. Rail with trail should be the default.